NHL Three Stars: Halak breaks Blues’ shutout record; Canucks win by Sedinery
Joel Ward received a gentle ribbing Saturday night in Dallas. His S.O.S. from the Omni Hotel bathroom made it on the Jumbotron, as did this little note, via @jeffk_stars: "Glad you could make it!" it reads. So nice, those Texans.
No. 1 Star: Henrik Sedin, Vancouver Canucks
Henrik had 3 assists in the Canucks' home opener, and two of them were just plain stupid. He and brother Daniel's Sedinery was strong in the Canucks' 6-2 win over the Edmonton Oilers, and never more so than on this amazing powerplay marker:
No. 2 Star: Tomas Hertl, San Jose Sharks
Teenage Mutant Ninja Hertl, who is adorable, scored his first career goal 0:46 into the Sharks' 4-1 win over the Phoenix Coyotes, and then he added another one even minutes later. By doing so, the 19-year-old became the youngest player to score 2 goals in a game for the Sharks since Patrick Marleau.
No. 3 Star: Jaroslav Halak, St. Louis Blues
It's not like the Blues really needed a shutout in their 7-0 defenestration of the Florida Panthers, but Halak gave them one anyway, stopping all 19 shots he faced. The shutout was Halak's 17th as a Blue, giving him sole possession of the franchise record.
Honourable mention: Mason Raymond was incredible in the Leafs' 5-4 shootout win over the Ottawa Senators, with a goal, two assists, and yet another controversial shootout goal scored in a spin-o-rama.
Yeah, he'll do that. The Senators grumbled about it because everyone always grumbles about it, but you'd think by now people would know this is Raymond's move... Milan Lucic and Torey Krug had two-point nights as the Boston Bruins topped the Red Wings, 4-1... Lars Eller scored his third of the season and three more Montreal Canadiens had two-point nights in a 4-1 win over the Philadelphia Flyers... The Columbus Blue Jackets spoiled the New York Islanders' home opener, scoring twice to tie the game in the third and winning 3-2 on Cam Atkinson's shootout goal. It's a shame that this slick pass from John Tavares to best buddy Matt Moulson came in a losing effort:
... The Tampa Bay Lightning mounted an identical comeback versus the Chicago Blackhawks, winning 3-2 in OT. Ben Bishop's 39 saves were the difference there... Sidney Crosby scored his second of the season as the Pittsburgh Penguins beat the Buffalo Sabres, 4-1. Also Chuck Kobasew did this to Steve Ott:
... Alex Ovechkin scored his 4th of the season already but it was the Washington Capitals' lone goal in a 2-1 loss to the Dallas Stars... Mathieu Perrault scored the game-winner with five seconds to go in overtime as the Anaheim Ducks edged the Minnesota Wild, 3-2.
Did You Know? Alex Chiasson has now scored 8 goals in 9 NHL games. That's absurd.
Dishonourable mention: Shame on the Islanders, treating their fans to a two-goal third-period collapse in their home opener... Tim Thomas surrendered 5 goals on 28 shots, although it doesn't seem fair to blame him entirely. Only two Panthers escaped the game with an even plus/minus. Nobody played well in this one... Taylor Hall had a rough game. He was on the ice for 4 of the Canucks' 6 goals, and in the penalty box for a fifth.
